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Volunteers needed!

We have a variety of volunteering roles, either as a one-off, occasional or regular (weekly, fortnightly, monthly).

Chair of Trustees and Trustees

We are looking for a new Chair of Trustees and Trustees to guide the charity. 

We need someone to take the helm as Chair of Trustees from January 2024, or as soon as possible in 2024.  The existing Chair has exceeded her term of office and would like to step down, however, she will remain on the Board as a Trustee until the new Chair has settled. It's a great opportunity for the right person, we have new plans to turn the charity around in January 2024 and to grow.  The Chair of Trustees Role Description is below for information and if you are interested, please contact us or send a CV.   

Likewise, we would like a couple of new Trustees, as part of our succession planning, to replace those standing down in October 2024.  We are looking for diversity, life experiences and skill which will help us to grow.  So why not make a difference and find out more?

We are a really friendly bunch and very supportive.  6 Board Meetings per year, 6pm-7.30pm either online or at the Guildford Centre and the AGM meeting and a monthly 30 minute online Financial Committee meeting.   

The Chair role is for 4-year term, the Trustee roles are for 5-years term.  Both roles will be provided with a comprehensive induction and support programme and we will offer to buddy you with an existing Trustee to help settle you into the role if you would like. 

If you would like to help make a difference to the lives of adults living with brain injuries, we would love to hear from you.   

 View Chair of Trustees full roles and responsibilities (PDF)

Patron vacancies

We are currently looking for additional supportive Patrons to help raise awareness of Headway Surrey.  If you have an interest in helping those with brain injury to access the support they need.  Or if you know someone with a brain injury, or if indeed it is yourself.  Then we would love to hear from you. 

Ideally you will bring something to the role, which will support Headway Surrey. 

Perhaps:

  • You might be well known.
  • You might be influential.
  • You might be well respected. 
  • You might be someone who is an expert in their own field.
  • You might be a successful sports person.
  • You might have good business connections in Surrey. 
  • You might be known in the media or a celebrity.
  • You might be a surgeon or medical expert with an interest in brain injury.
  • You might be a politician or royally connected. 

Patrons come in all shapes and sizes.  So if you wish to help us in this way, please do get in contact with Joint CEO Sonja Freebody or Maggee Fulleylove to discuss. 

Your involvement can be as little or as much as you would like to offer.  The choice would be yours.  Your support could make a big difference. 

Tea maker

We have slots available for a friendly tea maker or two.  Must be friendly and able to make tea and coffee and offer biscuits and cake! 

Volunteer regularly, weekly, fortnightly, monthly or just occasionally. 

This role helps by enabling our staff to have a quick break and also offers our clients an opportunity to talk to a "new" face and chat.  They love meeting new people. 

  • Tuesday and Thursdays mid morning during our centre days (approx 10.30am-11am) and afternoon (approx 1.30-2pm).
  • Friday morning - third week of every month at our bustling Drop In Session.  10.30am-12pm.  
  • Open Day - next one 13th October 10am-4pm. Couple of hours, half day or all day.

Apron provided on request and of course as much tea, cake, biscuits as you manage!  Perfect role for someone who wants to give a little time to help others and meet others. 

Fundraising volunteers

Can you help us and join a small team of Fundraising volunteers:

  • Collecting items for raffles and tombola.
  • Coordinating collecting tins.
  • Administering our foreign coin recycling or ink cartridge recycling.
  • Helping us to plan and run small fundraising events
  • Etc.

We are looking for a volunteers who have a little time available to help us work on a range of projects.  Join our team and we can contact you when we have projects that need support and you can decide if you have spare time and are interested in helping us.

For example,

  • We need people to help us put collecting boxes in public spaces and rotate them.   
  • We need people to email and collect raffle prizes in the autumn for our Christmas and Winter raffles. 
  • We need people to parcel up foreign coins and ink cartridges and send them off every 3-6 months. 
  • We need people to take items occasionally to Ewbanks Auctioneers, eg stamp collections. 
  • We need people to sell occasional items on eBay.  
  • We need people to join us at events and help. 

These roles are varied, however you will be making a difference to our charity and our fundraising efforts. 

Website content volunteer  

Are you experienced in Umbraco?  Could you update and add new News and Events pages, add a new service page or two, change details of our team members? 

Help is needed on an ongoing basis.  Probably about 1 hour or less per month.  

General helpers 

From time to time we are invited to events to have a table of information, this could be a hospital, school, fair, fete etc.  You would be helping the member of staff that is attending the event.  You would perhaps help to set up the table, hand out leaflets, take contact details and enquiries for the office to follow up.  No experience necessary, training on the job.  You would be an extra pair of hands and a friendly face to help our staff member.  

If this interests you, then contact us to put your details on our list of general helpers and we will email you with dates when we need help.  As they say, many hands make light work!  This is a great way to give a little to charity, learn new things, have a day out and meet new people. 

Autumn Garden volunteers

We have a small garden with a large beech tree!  In the autumn we would really appreciate someone coming to the centre once a week to sweep the leaves up into black bags. 

We will then take them to the dump (or if you have the time and you would enjoy visiting the dump, you would be welcome to take them to the dump.) 

Volunteering is dependant on when the leaves fall off!  From Sept - Dec, weather permitting.   

Bookkeeping volunteer

1-2 hours a week, to provide bookkeeping support to the charity.   To process purchase invoices, create sales invoices and do monthly bank reconciliations.  Experience of using Quickbooks and CharityLog would be an advantage and training will be given where necessary.  Friendly team, based in Stoughton, Guildford, remote working possible. 

Volunteer counsellors

We are looking for volunteer counsellors, Year 4 or 3 (with Year 1 completed successfully within an accredited counselling course). To help Headway Surrey provide a short-term counselling service to survivors of acquired or traumatic brain injury (clients) and their carers / families living in Surrey and its borders.

Headway Surrey counselling service’s purpose is to offer more people this time limited specialist service to enable their long-term well-being.

The role will offer the counselling volunteer an opportunity to train with us and learn about brain injury and become a part of the Headway Surrey team.

The role is to work directly with the clients and carers / families of those affected by brain injury, offering short-term counselling sessions (six sessions, with the option to extend to eight), writing notes and report summaries. Attending induction training and supervision sessions (10 per year).

Centre helpers

Wanted to help with all of these, or just some:

  • Support clients individually to do their worksheets using basic English and Maths.
  • Support clients with a wordsearch.
  • Take part in creative writing.
  • Be part of a discussion group on various topics. 
  • Playing board games.
  • Taking part in seated boccia and seated stretch.
  • A game of pool.
  • General conversation. 
  • Art or crafts.
  • Quiz Masters. 
  • Help with Special Interest Groups that we would like to establish.  Eg. Sewing Bee, Knit and Natter, Shedway, Book Club, Film or Music Appreciation, Car or Bike Groups, Gardening, etc. 

Mainly Tuesdays and Thursdays 10-2.30pm, but other days may be added in the future. 

London Marathon admin. volunteer

To co-ordinate emails to our runners.  We have approximately 5 spaces every year.  The role involves, registering the runners, ensuring they have a sponsorship page set up, sending general support emails to keep in touch and motivate them, answer any arising queries and to forward any updates from the CEOs to the runners, encouraging them to send in photos for us to use on social media.   

After the marathon, sending thanks, chasing runners (not literally!) for photos and quotes for our website and social media is one of the jobs.   It can be fun and interesting to meet new runners (usually remotely) and follow their story. etc and then re-advertising for the next year. 

About 1 hour a week average, suitable for a friendly and organised email confident person.  This volunteering role can be done remotely at a time that suits you.  Full training and support given. 

It's very rewarding to see their sponsorship targets rise.  Each runner has to raise at least £2,000.  The aim of the role is to help us raise £10,000-£14,000 or more every year!

See Sports Challenges

Admin. volunteers

To help with: general admin, research on internet, adding details to CRM, following up enquiries, Friends of Headway Surrey admin, general admin, thank you letters.

What our volunteers say

  • "I am always made to feel very welcome and appreciated".
  • "It's a very rewarding role - seeing people make progress and it's also fun.  I always leave in a great mood!"
  • "Very positive experience.  I have been able to gain such valuable experience working face to face with clients and see what its like to work within a team supporting clients."
  • "I like how involved I feel and how different each week is.  I also like how I was offered the opportunity to bring my own ideas into the Headway Surrey sessions."

"I have been volunteering at Headway for over 10 years. I enjoy assisting the clients in the various activities and outings and look forward to a big game of pool at lunchtime.   Staff, clients and volunteers all contribute to the fun atmosphere." 

David S - volunteer since 2017

"I started volunteering at the Centre in 2017. Initially my reason for volunteering was the chance to give something back to the community but it quickly became something much more than that. Thursdays are spent with the Centre staff and other volunteers helping members with, amongst other things, cognitive, executive and life skills.It is so rewarding to see the progress of members improving their skills over the weeks far beyond what might have been expected. This is all done in a caring environment where learning is made fun and enjoyable."

Ian P - volunteer since 2017

Headway Surrey is an equal opportunity employer. Employment is based solely on a person's merit, skills, experience and qualifications directly related to professional competence.  Applications from individuals are encouraged regardless of disability, age, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief and marriage and civil partnerships.  

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